Door-opening and cattle-releasing device



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E DION DOOR OPENING AND CATTLE RELEASING DEVICE Attorney June 17 192.4.

June 11, 1924. 1, 9s;429

E. DION DOOR OPENING AND CATTLE RELEASING DEVICE Filed Sent. 15 1923 2 Shana-5 06% 2 3 -1 I v a 3.7 a a5 a? 3% l i ES$ if o 2% 26, =12 j 3.; e6 4"6 55- 5 1'1? jj Inventor By o Attorney Patented June 17, 1924.

nnouaan pron, or LAQHINE, QUEBEC, CANADA.

DOOR-OPENING AND CATTLE-BELEASING DEVICE.

Application filed September 15, 1923. Serial No. 662,927.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDOUARD DION, a

subject of the King of Great Britian,

residing at Lachine, in the Province of Quebec, Canada, have invented. certain new and useful Improvements in Door-Opening and Cattle-Releasing Devices; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The present invention pertains to a novel device for opening. the doors of a barn in 7 case of fire. The invention further includes a mechanism for releasing the cattle from their stalls simultaneously with the opening of the doors.

\Vith these objects'in view the invention comprises a weighted cable. extending along the length of the barn at the interior thereof and having one or more fuses inserted therein, lVithin the barn is alsofsupported a rotatable shaft connected to the weighted cable-in such a manner as to be turned when the weight drops as a result of the breaking of one of the fuses. The end walls of the barn are provided with fire doors normally pulled outwardly by means of springs but ordinarily locked bymeans of latches. The above mentioned shaft carries several rocker arms which have link and bell crank connections to the latches. When the cable breaks, the shaft and rocker arms are turned, causing the latches to be released and the doors to fly open.

The invention further includes a device for releasing the cattle when the doors are opened. A number of tether poles aredisposed within the stalls and are normally held in place by means of eyes. The above mentioned shaft is suitably connected to the tether poles to lift them out of the eyes when the shaft is turned in the manner above described. As the poles are thus released, the cattle are free to withdraw therefrom and escape through the open doors.

The invention is fully disclosed in the, following description and in the accompanying drawings, in which: E

Figure 1 is a transverse vertical section of a barn equipped with the invention, taken on the line 1,1 of Figure 7;

' Figure 2 is a fragmentary elevation showng a door; I

Figure 3 is a transverse vertical section on the line 33 of Figure 7 Figure 4 is a transverse vertical section corresponding to Figure 3, and showing the weight lowered;

Figure 5 is a section on the Figure 2; Y

Figure 6 is a section corresponding to Figline 55 of.

ure 5, showing the latch raised:

Figure 7 is a longitudinal vertical sectionof the barn Figure 8 is a plan View of one of the series of stalls Figure 9 is a fragmentary horizontal section of one end of the barn; I v

Figure 10 is an end elevation of the stalls; and, y 1

Figure 11 is a fragmentary perspective view of a stall partition and associated parts. Reference will now be had to these Views by means of like characters which are employed to designate corresponding parts throughout.

Figures 1 and 7 show a barn comprising side walls 1 and 2, end walls 3 and 4 and a roof 5. Each of the end walls is provided with a pair of fire doors 6 adapted to be held closed by means of pivoted latches 7 receivable in keepers 8 secured to the endwalls. Adjacent the doors the end walls .carry angular brackets 9 to which are attached springs 10 connected to the doors. By means of these devices the doors fiy openwhen thev latches are released. Each fire door contains a small [door 11 to be used by a person entering and leaving the barn. I

At opposite sides of the longitudinal center of the barn are erected rows of stall partitions 12 forming two series of stalls 13- At the inner edge'of each partition is secured a bearing member 14, and a pair of parallel shafts 15 are supported in these bearings. From these shafts, arms 16-extend into the stalls and carry tether poles 17 slidablein eyes 18 also secured to the partitions, Each pole is surrounded by a ring 19 to which is connected a chaln 20 which may be attached to the body of the animal in any. suitable manner.

An eye 21 is secured to one of the end walls at a point near-the apex of the roof.

The-eye is engaged by a hook 22. to which is connected a fuse23. The opposite end wall supports a pulley 24, and a cable 25 extends from the fuse 23 around the pulley. An-

other fuse 23 is interposed in the cable, and as many of these fuses as desired may be inserted.

The end walls also carry bearings 26 disposed vertically beneath the eye 21 and pulley 24. Within these bearings is journaled a shaft 27, to the ends of which are secured rocker arms 28, as clearly shown in Figure 3. The end walls further carry bearings 29 ofi'set laterally with reference to the apex of the roof and disposed above the fire doors 6. In each of these bearings is journalled a bell-crank lever 30 connected to one end of a rocker arm 28 by means of a link 31. The shaft 27 also carries a finger 32 adjacent to one of the rocker arms 28. From this finger depends a cord 33 at the lower end of which is a ring 34. This ring receives the free end of the cable as shown in Figures 1, 3 and 4. From the ring is suspended a weight 36 by means of a cord 35. To the remaining ends of the bell-crank levers are attached rods 37 having hooked ends 38. These rods are guided in eyes 39 secured to the inner faces of the end walls, and the hooks are passed through openings 40 in the end walls to engage the lower edges of the latches 7.

In the operation of the device as thus far described, the fuses 23 and 23 will break when a predetermined temperature exists within the barn. As a consequence of the breaking of the cable, the weight 36 falls and causes the shaft 27 to turn. The turning of the shaft tilts the rocker arm 28 and pulls the links 31 inwardly. The bell crank levers '30 are turned on their pivots and raise the rods 37. The hooked ends 38 of the latter raise the latches 7 and allow the fire doors to 'be pulled open by the springs 10.

at opposite sides of the longitudinal center line, as illustrated in Figures 1, 7 and 10.

, In vertical alinement with these levers the shaft 27 carries a pair of shorter rocker arms 44. The ends of these two rocker arms are connected to the four bell-crank levers 43 by means of links 45. As will be seen from Figure 8, the ends of the shafts 15 are bent "outwardly as at 46. The remaining ends of shafts 15 are consequently turned, lifting the arms 16 upwardly. As a result of the lat ter movement the tether poles 17 are with- "drawn from'the eyes 18, and the links 19 slip therefrom, releasing the animals. The

cattle are therefore free to escape from the barn as soon as the doors 6 are opened.

Along the apex of the roof is supported a water pipe 48 carrying the sprinkler heads 49. It will be apparent that the sprinkler pipe may be provided with a valve operable on the breaking of the cable 25, so that the Water may be turned on as the interior of the barn reaches a sufliciently high temperature.

Although a specific embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, it will be understood that various changes in the details of construction may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as indicated'by the appended claims.

Having thus fully described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. In combination with a barn having'a plurality of fire doors,latches for said doors,

a weighted cable, a shaft journalled in the walls of the barn, rocker arms secured to said shaft, a fingersecured to the shaft and connected to the weighted cable, bell crank levers supported within the barn, link connections between the rocker arms and the bellcrank levers, and hooked rods secured and between the last named shaft and the first named shafts.

3. In combination with a barn having a plurality of fire doors, latches for said doors, a plurality of stall'pa'rtitions disposed within the barn, a pair of shafts extending along said partitions, armsextending from said shafts into the stalls, eyes secured to said partitions, tether poles connected to said arms and guided in the eyes, a weighted cable supported by the barn, fuses inserted in said cable, a third shaft supported by the barn, rocker arms carried by said shaft, an operative connection between the cable and one of said rocker arms, connecting means i extending from the rocker arms to the latches and from the rocker arms to the first named shafts.

4. In combination with a barn having a plurality of fire doors, latches for said doors, a plurality of stall partitions disposed within the barn, a pair of shafts extending along said partitions, arms extending from said shafts into the stalls, eyes secured to said partitions, tether poles connected to said first named shafts, and springs secured to the outer faces of the end walls and to the 10 doors for opening the latter when the latches are released.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

EDOUARD DION. 

